This section provides background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the disclosure. It should be understood that the statements in this section of this document are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Aircraft are often armed with weapons; however, heretofore weapons have not been mounted in the spinner of a rotorcraft. In aircraft, such as the P-39 Airacobra built prior to World War II, a barrel of a gun (37 mm cannon) passed through the spinner with the magazine and the receiver located aft of the propeller in the fuselage. The gun system mounted in the P-39 remained stationary relative to the fuselage and did not rotate with the spinner. To accommodate the cannon, the P-39 mounted the engine behind the pilot and driving the tractor propeller through a long drive shaft offset from the centerline of the propeller hub.